Back to 80: My Literary Life

"Indeed, I do think so."

"Don't envy me. You are now the deputy director, and you have a bright future! Besides, as cadres, you have few benefits? Food, housing, and daily necessities. The fund-raising house you transferred to me is half the price of the market price. Price! How many people are envious and jealous.”

"The benefits are good, but I really don't have much money in my pocket." Zhao Hongjun took a mouthful of food, chewed slowly, and said: "Actually, there are many ways to make money. Let me be in charge of coal deployment. Unplanned coal The price is several times higher than planned, and if you just approve a note, the benefits can be in the tens of thousands."

Dual-track price system!

Fang Minghua quickly thought of a term.

"Then why didn't you do that?" he asked.

"Uncle Zhao is very strict. I heard that Uncle Zhao repeatedly ordered the Red Army brother not to do this." Song Tangtang interjected.

"Yes, the old man is very strict, but this is only one aspect. On the other hand, I am worried." Zhao Hongjun said.

"Worry?"

"This thing is a bottomless pit. The first time you are approved, there will be a second time. If you promise someone, another person will come to your door. To be honest, Minghua, among the friends I have made, you are the only one. He has never asked me to do anything."

"Don't color TVs count? Don't fund-raising houses count?" Fang Minghua asked with a smile.

"I gave you the fund-raising house on my own initiative. Your house is already in trouble. As for a color TV ticket, that's nothing! Someone asked me for dozens of fucking tickets! They cost 200 yuan each and they were resold. ! I still want to do this."

"You did it?"

"If you want to do it, I still look down on this small amount of money. The business in coal is much bigger than this." Zhao Hongjun said lazily.

"It's better to take it easy." Fang Minghua advised.

"I know better. Let's not talk about this. Let's drink. We won't go home until we're drunk!" Zhao Hongjun raised his glass after speaking.

Fang Minghua and Song Tangtang also raised their glasses.

Perhaps this is the mentality of cadres with some real power in this era, right?

Today is Thursday. Song Tangtang did not go to night school in the evening, so he took the bus to the magazine office to find Fang Minghua, mainly to read the manuscripts he wrote.

While the girl was reading, she sometimes put forward some of her own opinions, and of course helped to proofread and correct some typos in it.

"Minghua, I think you described this Zhou Dashan as if Kong Ming was still alive." Song Tangtang said after reading a part of the plot.

Fang Minghua usually rests at this time, drinks tea, and sings some songs to refresh his mind.

I don't have much time to review manuscripts during the day, and most of the time I am still busy writing. One day, I was feeling dizzy and the girl came over, so I wanted to chat to change my mind.

Now after listening to what Song Tangtang said, he explained: "It's like folklore. The descriptions are naturally quite magical. Anyway, this person doesn't come forward, so others will explain it."

Song Tangtang nodded after hearing this, picked up the pen and corrected two typos, and continued reading.

At this moment, I suddenly saw a young man hurriedly walking into the yard outside the bamboo curtain, and barged into the house without saying hello.

It's Zhao Hongjun.

His face was full of excitement and he was holding a book in his hand. When he saw Song Tangtang sitting next to him, he immediately started joking.

"Hey. Tangtang is here too? I didn't bother you two having sex, right?"

"What are you doing? Tangtang is helping me proofread the manuscript!" Fang Minghua replied dissatisfied.

"No way? It's such a good time. I see there's no one else in your yard."

The more this guy talks, the more outrageous he becomes.

Just when Fang Minghua was about to argue, Song Tangtang next to him spoke up: "Brother Red Army, I saw you and a girl in the Labor Park that day and I was embarrassed to continue watching. How about I tell Uncle Zhao what you were doing at that time?"

"Don't say goodbye to Tangtang, please don't!" Zhao Hongjun was shocked.

"What are they doing?" Fang Minghua suddenly became curious.

"Let's not talk about this. Minghua, I came to you today to read a book to you!" Zhao Hongjun quickly changed the subject and put the book in his hand on the desk.

Fang Minghua looked at it.

"The Legend of the Condor Heroes"!

It’s still in traditional Chinese!

"Did you get it from Xiangjiang?" Fang Minghua asked.

He knew that as of now, Jin Yong's novels have not been published in the mainland.

Zhao Hongjun nodded as expected: "Yes, a friend of mine brought it from Xiangjiang. It's so beautiful! I'm not belittling you. It's much better than the ones you wrote!"

Fang Minghua was speechless.

Do you compare popular literature with serious literature?

It's not a track.

After hearing what Zhao Hongjun said, Song Tangtang, who was sitting next to him, curiously picked up the book and looked at it carefully.

Zhao Hongjun was still very excited and sat down on the stool next to him.

"Tell you what, man, I found a way to get rich!"

The path to wealth? !

Seeing that his good friend looked like he had been injected with chicken blood, Fang Minghua knew what he was going to do and asked tentatively.

"Do you want to publish this kind of martial arts novel in the mainland?"

"Sure enough, the one who knows me is Minghua." Zhao Hongjun said in a polite manner: "I have already thought about it. I will secretly do some business and find a few partners to publish this kind of martial arts book!"

Fang Minghua didn't answer, and Song Tangtang next to him intervened:

"Brother Red Army, isn't it? Nowadays, regular book publishing requires an ISBN. You are not from the publishing house, so how can you get an ISBN?"

"Hey, buy an ISBN. I asked my sister. The control over there in the south is loose. As long as you pay, some publishers are willing to give you an ISBN. Besides, you've read this book, and it's not pornographic. It's not a reactionary novel, so why can't it be published? Didn't we publish "Three Heroes and Five Righteousness" before? Didn't Huacheng's "Wulin" magazine also publish martial arts novels?"

What Zhao Hongjun said was so convincing that Song Tangtang didn't know how to refute it for a while.

"Minghua, how are you? Do you want to take a share?" Zhao Hongjun asked.

Fang Minghua knew that Zhao Hongjun's sister was in Huacheng, where people's concepts and degree of reform and opening up were far higher than those in mainland places like Xijing.

Especially in the spring of this year (1983), the then-President of Guangdong Province inspected and accelerated the pace of local reform and opening up.

However, it's still a little early.

"Red Army, I'm very interested in your project, but I suggest you put it aside." Fang Minghua expressed his point of view.

"Why?"

"It won't work this year. The time is not ripe. I suggest putting it to next year or the year after."

"Why?"

Can I say why?

There is also a campaign to "oppose mental pollution" at the end of the year. Aren't you trying to get into trouble?

At this time, Song Tangtang next to him also advised: "Brother Red Army, I think Minghua is right. Look at the chaos outside now. Although it does not involve cultural aspects, you should be careful."

At this time, there was a faint sound of sharp police sirens outside, whizzing by. There were a lot of them in recent days.

Seeing Zhao Hongjun's silence, Fang Minghua added: "I can't eat hot tofu in a hurry. I remember you told me during the Chinese New Year the year before last that you didn't want to work anymore and wanted to resign. I advise you that it's not time yet. Isn't this right?" Two years have passed, but now is not the time, so please bear with me. If you need money now, I have saved some for you to use."

Zhao Honghong finally left without saying whether she was going to do it or not.

Fang Minghua sighed slightly, even a tough guy can only say so much.